Question

Describe one thing that you learned in this microbiology course that can now apply to your everyday life at work and or at home. Include in your answer the types of microbes involved in this aspect and how this knowledge will be beneficial

Answer 1

Answer :

In everyday life all humans, mammals come across with one or the other type of microbes which provide both advantageous as well as harmful effects.

The interaction of humans and microbes dates back to 18^th century, when Theodor Schwann in Germany demonstrated that yeasts were responsible for alcohol production in beer and wine fermentations. Louis Pasteur found that the spoilage of wines was due to bacteria that convert sugars to lactic acid rather than alcohol produced by the yeasts. Some of other application of the microorganisms are as follows

Lactic acid bacteria are used to make yogurt, cheese, sour cream, buttermilk and other fermented milk products.

Vinegars are produced by bacterial acetic acid fermentation

Yeast is used in the manufacture of beer and wine and for the leavening of breads. It is also involved in fermentations to convert corn and other vegetable carbohydrates into ethanol to make beer, wine, or gasohol; but bacteria are the agents of most other food fermentations

Other fermented foods include soy sauce, sauerkraut, dill pickles, olives, salami, cocoa and black teas.

Microorganisms are utilized for the production of antibiotics, these antibiotics kill or inhibit the growth of the other microorganisms and also they are used in the treatment of infectious diseases.

Microorganisms are also used for the production of vaccines against the small pox, polio, Hepatitis Band rabies .

Negative effects of microorganisms

These are the causal agents of certain diseases in humans, plants, birds and animals. There is an estimate that 30% of bacteria are disease causing pathogens .Certain bacteria in humans known to cause diseases like Typhoid, Tuberculosis, diphtheria, plague, fever and cholera. There are certain bacteria which causes the various diseases in plants like bacterial bilght of potato, pomegranate and so on .